IStructE’s Structural Safety and Risk Conference brings experts together

With mounting pressure on structural engineers to deliver complex, efficient and cost-effective designs to tight deadlines, the need for a risk-based approach and proactive strategies is critical. At every stage in the Plan of Works, there are actions structural engineers can take to reduce errors, minimise risk and improve safety.

At conference leading experts will explore the drivers for change, while myriad presenters share actionable strategies for avoiding common errors, mitigating risk and improving structural safety.

The one-day conference at 47-58 Bastwick Street (which features presentations on the lessons from the Grenfell Tower tragedy and trends in the fire safety domain) will be chaired by Emily Harbottle, founder and CEO of Cascade Risk Management. Harbottle is a former military helicopter pilot and aviation risk specialist and brings fresh perspectives on the subject of risk management in the built environment.

Expert speakers will be covering a wide range of subjects. Back in 2021, Paul Morrell OBE (principal of Paul Morrell Consulting) was appointed by central Government to lead an independent review of the testing regime for construction products. The keynote speaker at conference, Morrell’s address is entitled ‘Skill and Care in the Service of Building Safety’.

The Building Safety Act 2022 has established the principle of duties of competence, compliance and co-operation that clients, designers and contractors must take reasonable steps to meet. Morrell’s presentation will discuss how this principle can be extended to products such that everyone involved in the ‘relay race’ of design and construction knows their duties when carrying the baton and handing it on.

Kate Grange KC is a barrister at 39 Essex Chambers. Grange was one of the lead counsels on the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, focusing on construction and technical aspects. On this occasion, Grange will review ‘Building a Safety Culture: Lessons from Grenfell’.

Lessons learned from CROSS

Paul Livesey is head of operations for Collaborative Reporting for Safer Structures (the confidential reporting system which allows professionals working in the built environment to report on fire and structural safety issues). Livesey’s presentation reviews ‘Lessons from CROSS: Improving Structural Safety Through Reporting’.

CROSS has been receiving and publishing voluntarily submitted safety reports for 20 years. Livesey will explore key learning outcomes from recent reports, highlighting common design and construction issues, their causes and how improved practices can enhance structural safety and resilience.

Charlotte Wildman, design manager at Willmott Dixon, will focus on ‘Mitigating the Risks in Design and Build Contracts’, while fire engineering consultant and fire risk assessor Dr Peter Wilkinson CEng will speak about ‘Emerging Trends in Fire Safety’.

Wilkinson will share identified trends and specific fire performance topics that have led to CROSS interventions during the last four years.

Booking details

Conference (which runs in hybrid format) starts at 10.00 am and concludes at 5.00 pm.

Full event and booking details can be accessed on the IStructE’s website, where there’s a listing of the speakers and the conference programme detailing the day’s excellent sessions. Visit https://www.istructe.org/events/hq/2025/structural-safety-risk-conference/